Olympus C-5050 Zoom

Their best camera yet? - Olympus introduces a top-of-the-line five-megapixel model with noise reduction technology, optimum image enlargement, an improved interface, and support for three memory formats.

Page 2:Executive Overview

Review First Posted: 01/09/2003

Executive Overview
Olympus' "C-series" digicams have a long, distinguished history, reaching
back to the original C-2000. With each generation, Olympus has advanced the
design a bit further, steadily increasing features and capabilities. With the
C-5050 Zoom though, they've taken a much larger step forward than in any of
their previous revisions of the line, adding a wide range of features, but also
substantially overhauling the camera's user interface in the process. The result
is really an all-new camera design. The new design and excellent image quality
combine to make this the best digicam Olympus has yet made, at least in the
eyes of this reviewer.

The 5.0-megapixel C-5050 is similar in many ways to Olympus' recent
4.1-megapixel model (the C-4040), incorporating the same super-bright 3x zoom
lens for excellent low-light capabilities, and a classic all-black advanced
rangefinder-style body with textured, non-slip holding surfaces, including the
rubberized-grip lens barrel. Newly-added features expand the C-5050's versatility
and exposure capabilities, and a host of new external buttons and revamped LCD
displays greatly improve the user interface. Measuring only 4.5 x 3.1 x 2.7
inches (114 x 80 x 70mm) and weighing 13.5 ounces (383 grams) without batteries
or memory cards (17.5 ounces, 495 grams with standard AA NiMH batteries), the
C-5050 is fairly easy to stash in a large pocket or purse, though I highly recommend
purchasing a soft cover or small camera bag for added protection.

Like its 4.1-megapixel predecessor, the C-5050 offers many advanced user controls,
including a Multi-Spot metering mode that averages up to eight selectable spot
readings, a one-touch white balance function (with optional manual white balance
correction for minor color adjustments), spot autofocus, contrast, saturation,
and sharpness adjustments, and QuickTime movies with simultaneous sound recording
capabilities. It also incorporates several new features, including a tilting
LCD monitor for more convenient viewing; advanced white balance options; a live
histogram feature in Record mode; an external flash hot shoe for both generic
and dedicated flash units; an array of Scene and function modes for more creative
shooting; and an improved user interface with more external control. There's
also a three-way memory compartment, with a Compact Flash slot as well as a
clever dual-function slot for SmartMedia and xD-Picture Cards.

The C-5050 Zoom features both an optical, real-image viewfinder and a rear panel,
1.8-inch, wide-view color TFT LCD monitor, with 114,000 pixels. The tilting
LCD monitor lifts out from the back panel, and tilts down about 30 degrees,
or upward 90 degrees for better viewing angles when the camera is held above
or below eye level. When the LCD monitor is engaged, it automatically displays
detailed exposure information, with the current exposure mode, f/stop setting,
shutter speed, and exposure compensation listed across the top of the monitor
(a nice feature not found on all digicams) and the number of images remaining
on the memory card in the current resolution setting (displayed briefly when
the monitor is turned on), at the bottom of the monitor. The C-5050 also provides
a very helpful numeric distance display when using the manual focus option,
as well as a zoom bar (activated when digital zoom is on) that shows both the
camera's 3x optical zoom in operation, as well as the digital zoom's progress,
when you zoom past the optical telephoto limit. New on the C-5050 is a live
histogram display, which displays the tonal values of the subject at your current
exposure setting. This is helpful for checking the exposure before capturing
an image.

The 7.1-21.3mm 3x zoom aspherical glass lens is equivalent to a 35-105mm lens
on a 35mm camera, with a very fast f/1.8-f/2.6 (wide angle to telephoto) maximum
aperture. In addition to the C-5050's 3x optical zoom, images can be enlarged
up to 3.4x with the digital zoom, depending on the image resolution size. (Users
should be aware that digital zoom is not the same as optical zoom, since the
digital zoom is merely cropping and enlarging the center portion of the CCD.
As a result, digitally enlarged images often result in higher image noise and/or
softer resolution.) After a long absence from the Olympus line, the C-5050 Zoom
sports an optional autofocus assist illuminator, greatly extending the camera's
usefulness for low-light shooting.

The C-5050 Zoom offers a great deal of exposure control, including Program (P),
Aperture Priority (A), Shutter Speed Priority (S), and Manual (M) exposure modes.
Program mode controls both aperture and shutter speed, while Aperture and Shutter
Priority modes give you control over aperture or shutter speed, while the camera
chooses the best corresponding settings. When used in A or S modes, apertures
range from f/1.8 to f/8.0 and shutter speeds from 1/2,000 to four seconds. The
Manual exposure mode provides the same aperture range, but with shutter times
as long as 16 seconds. The C-5050 also has five preset Scene modes, including
Portrait, Sports, Landscape-Portrait, Landscape-Scene, and Night modes, for
point-and-shoot style shooting. Additionally, in any of the main record modes
(P, A, S, M, My, or Movie), the "Scene" option of the Shooting menu
lets you apply Night, Portrait, or Landscape characteristics to the shot automatically.
Since not all of the Shooting menu options are available in the actual Scene
modes, this is a way to let the camera set itself up for a specific kind of
exposure without giving up any manual control.

The C-5050 Zoom provides five ISO options (Auto, 64, 100, 200, and 400), automatic
exposure bracketing, Digital ESP and Spot metering modes, Single and Multi-Spot
Metering AE Lock modes, plus exposure compensation from +2 to -2 exposure values
(EV) in one-third-step increments. An advanced Noise Reduction System uses dark-frame
subtraction to minimize background noise (particularly in low-light conditions
and long exposures). The C-5050 Zoom's white balance offerings are some of the
most extensive I've seen on a prosumer digicam to date, with a total of nine
settings (Auto, Shade, Cloudy, Sunny, Evening Sun, Daylight Fluorescent, Neutral
Fluorescent, Cool White Fluorescent, White Fluorescent, Incandescent, or One-Touch,
the manual setting). With the manual white balance option, you can save as many
as four custom settings, which is useful if you frequently shoot under a specific
light source. A white balance color adjustment function lets you dial in red
or blue color shifts from +7 to -7 steps (arbitrary units), providing excellent
control over color balance.

Image contrast, sharpness, and saturation adjustments are available through
the Mode Setup menu, and a Function menu option allows you to capture images
in black and white or sepia tone (with additional White Board and Black Board
settings for capturing text). An adjustable Automatic Exposure Lock (AEL) function
locks an exposure reading independently of the autofocus system, without having
to hold down the Shutter button halfway while you reframe the image. AEL optionally
takes a single exposure reading or up to eight averaged spot readings for more
accurate exposures. There's also a 12-second self-timer option for self-portraits,
and an infrared (IR) remote controller with a three-second shutter delay.

The C-5050 Zoom's Movie mode records QuickTime movies with or without sound,
in either SQ (160 x 120 pixels) or HQ (320 x 240 pixels) modes. Four-second
sound clips can be recorded to accompany still images, either with image capture,
or later during image playback. A Sequence mode is available for capturing multiple
images at up to 3.3 frames per second, and a Panorama mode allows you to take
up to 10 formatted shots for merging with Camedia's Panorama Stitch software
in the computer. A 2-in-1 capture mode snaps two vertically-oriented images
in succession, and saves them side-by-side as a single image. The effect is
like a split-screen view.

The camera's internal flash offers five operating modes (Flash Off, Auto-Flash,
Forced Flash, Red-Eye Reduction, and Slow Synchro), with a range that extends
to approximately 18 feet (5.6 meters) in wide-angle mode and to about 12 feet
(3.8 meters) in telephoto mode. A standard hot shoe allows you to connect an
external flash unit when additional flash power is needed. You can also increase
or decrease the internal flash power from -2 to +2 EV in one-third-step increments
through the Shooting menu.

The Olympus C-5050 Zoom ships with a 32MB xD-Picture Card for image storage
(larger capacity cards are available separately), but the camera also accommodates
CompactFlash (type I or type II) and SmartMedia card formats. You can connect
the camera directly to your computer via a high-speed USB interface to download
images, and if you want a larger viewfinder (or image playback) display, Olympus
provides a video output cable for connection to a television set (which works
nicely with the included remote control). Software shipped with the unit includes
Olympus' Camedia Master 4.0 utility package, which provides minor organization
and editing tools, in addition to a panorama "stitching" application.
Apple QuickTime and USB drivers for Macintosh and Windows are also supplied.

The new Camedia C-5050 Zoom offers exceptional creative control, great low-light
capabilities, and large file sizes for maximum print output. Combine this with
first-rate image quality, and an excellent user interface, and it's easy to
see why I call this the best camera Olympus has ever made. (Yes, I actually
do rate it above their excellent E-10 and E-20 models, largely for the C-5050's
much greater shooting speed.)